Version Changes
.NET Framework 1.0 This is the first release of the .NET Framework that was released on February 13, 2002. It is available on its own as a redistributable package or in a software development kit. It is also part of the first release of Microsoft Visual Studio .NET (also known as Visual Studio .NET 2002). Changes since 1.0 * Built-in support for mobile ASP.NET controls. Previously available as an add-on for .NET Framework, now part of the framework. * Security changes - enable Windows Forms assemblies to execute in a semi-trusted manner from the Internet, and enable Code Access Security in ASP.NET applications. * Built-in support for ODBC and Oracle databases. Previously available as an add-on for .NET Framework 1.0, now part of the framework. * .NET Compact Framework - a version of the .NET Framework for small devices. * Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) support. * Numerous API changes. .NET Framework 1.1 This is the first major .NET Framework upgrade. It is available on its own as a redistributable package or in a software development kit, and was published April 3, 2003. It is also part of the second release of Microsoft Visual Studio .NET (released as Visual Studio .NET 2003). This is the first version of the .NET Framework to be included as part of the Windows operating system - it is part of Windows Server 2003. Windows Server 2003 originally shipped with the 1.1 RTM version. Changes since 1.1 * Numerous API changes. * A new hosting API for native applications wishing to host an instance of the .NET runtime. The new API gives a fine grain control on the behavior of the runtime with regards to multithreading, memory allocation, assembly loading and more (detailed reference). It was initially developed to efficiently host the runtime in Microsoft SQL Server, which implements its own scheduler and memory manager. * Full 64-bit support for both the x64 and the IA64 hardware platforms. * Language support for Generics built directly into the .NET CLR. * Many additional and improved ASP.NET web controls. * New data controls with declarative data binding. * New personalization features for ASP.NET, such as support for themes, skins and webparts. * .NET Micro Framework - a version of the .NET Framework related to the Smart Personal Objects Technology initiative more.... .NET Framework 2.0 Released with Visual Studio .NET 2005, Microsoft SQL Server 2005 and BizTalk 2006. The 2.0 Redistributable Package can be downloaded for free from Microsoft, and was published January 22, 2006 The 2.0 Software Development Kit (SDK) can be downloaded for free from Microsoft. It is included as part of Visual Studio 2005 and Microsoft SQL Server 2005. Version 2.0 is the last version with support for Windows 2000 .NET Framework 2.0 shipped with Windows Server 2003 R2 (not installed by default). .NET Framework 3.0 .NET Framework 3.0, formerly called WinFX,WinFX name change announcement includes a new set of managed code APIs that are an integral part of Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 operating systems. It is also available for Windows XP SP2 and Windows Server 2003 as a download. There are no major architectural changes included with this release; .NET Framework 3.0 includes version 2.0 of the Common Language Runtime. .NET Framework 3.0 consists of four major new components: * Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), formerly code-named Avalon; a new user interface subsystem and API based on XML and vector graphics, which uses 3D computer graphics hardware and Direct3D technologies. See WPF SDK for developer articles and documentation on WPF. * Windows Communication Foundation (WCF), formerly code-named Indigo; a service-oriented messaging system which allows programs to interoperate locally or remotely similar to web services. * Windows Workflow Foundation (WWF) allows for building of task automation and integrated transactions using workflows. * Windows CardSpace (WCS), formerly code-named InfoCard; a software component which securely stores a person's digital identities and provides a unified interface for choosing the identity for a particular transaction, such as logging in to a website.